How can clubs get the most out of virtual?

Get the Most Out of Virtual

By Steph Eaves, Health Club Management and Sports Management | Published in Health Club Management 2018 issue 9 | Get the most out of virtual

It took years for virtual to be accepted by the market, however, things have reached a tipping point recently as operators have been adopting it in earnest, in a bid to get an edge over the competition and reduce costs.

As with all new things, implementation brings expected and unexpected benefits, such as the power to experiment with new classes without financial risk and a straightforward way to connect to the fast-growing home fitness market.

However, there’s a balance to be stuck between virtual and live classes, to ensure it works for the benefit of all, as our experts explain.

Jason Von Bank, Wellbeats

How can clubs exploit virtual?

Start by integrating virtual into your offerings. For example, personal trainers can use Wellbeats fitness assessments with clients and also supplement one-on-one training with virtual classes that members can do on their own.

Clubs can also use virtual to create communities of like-minded members with similar goals, such as offering virtual spin classes to cyclists in the off-season or yoga classes to members who want to improve their flexibility.

What are the benefits?

Virtual classes enable clubs to engage members beyond the facility and deliver a more customized experience.

They also break down barriers for people who are not quite ready for a public workout or who are juggling caregiving or intensive work schedules that make it difficult to get to a regular class.

More importantly, virtual classes can open up additional revenue streams for clubs and assist both with member retention and long-term engagement.

Any other tips?

The consumer demand for virtual fitness is growing fast and clubs need to embrace it and view it as a supplement to live classes rather than competition for their more traditional services.

Clubs that integrate virtual fitness in a variety of ways create membership continuity and strengthen membership acquisition and retention strategies.